As the saying goes, “Iron sharpens iron.”
We will see more of that in 2026-27 with the Florida High School Athletic Association’s (FHSAA) new Open Division for 11 sports where the top eight teams regardless of classification play for an overall state champion.
Meanwhile, a tentative plan for the next two years has FHSAA Baseball Rural state champion Union County (Lake Butler) and state runner-up Trenton competing in the same district.
That would mean that one of those two teams would not make it back to the final four in Fort Myers.
The same can be said about softball, where 3-time state champion Trenton moves into the same district as Union County and Branford for the next two years.
The new FHSAA Rural-District 6 will include Bell, Dixie County (Cross City), Fort White, Trenton, Union County and Hilliard.
“Well, an already tough district just got a lot tougher,” said Union County coach Brian Tomlinson. “I feel like the postseason for softball should change anyway. You have two of the top teams in the Rural class that are now in the same district but only one will be able to compete at the final four.”
This past spring, Hilliard, Branford, and Union County all made the playoffs, and Dixie County lost at Branford in the Rural-District 6 championship game.
Although Union County made the playoffs, the Tigers lost to Dixie County in the district semifinals.
On May 12, Trenton slipped past Willison, 2-1, to get back to the final four. The following day, Branford lost at Madison County, 3-2 in nine innings, in the Rural-Region 3 Final, denying the Bucs their fourth straight final four appearance.
“We understand that district and regional realignment is part of the landscape of high school athletics, and we respect the process that goes into those decisions,” said Trenton softball coach Kevin Benson. “The new alignment presents a different set of challenges, including the combining of multiple programs with a proven track record of success and multiple final four appearances not just with a region but within a single district.”
Rural-Region 4 champion Trenton, which defeated Region 3 champion Madison County, 1-0, in this year’s state semifinals, will also move into Rural-Region 3.
Madison County will remain in Rural-Region 3, which means your top four teams in that region this past year would have been Trenton, Madison County, Branford and Union County.
Only one of those teams would have made the final four instead of two.
Two years ago, Trenton defeated Branford with a miracle comeback to win the 2024 Class 1A state title at Legends Way Ball Fields in Clermont.
The Lady Tigers, who were down to their final out and trailing 4-0, rallied for four runs to tie it and then won it, 6-5, in extra innings to win their third state softball title since 2019.
Under the tentative district assignment, we wouldn’t get to see that matchup in the final four or the title game.
Benson said that with the current alignment “there are questions about whether certain districts and regions have become disproportionately stronger than others.”
“In some cases, highly ranked teams may be forced to eliminate one another earlier in the postseason, while teams in less competitive regions could have a more favorable path to advancement,” Benson said. “When that occurs, it raises legitimate concerns about whether the state final four accurately reflects the four best teams in the classification.”
Next season you might see a team like Fort Meade or Williston advance to the final four from Rural-Region 4 now that Trenton is gone.
Branford coach Oscar Saavedra, who took the Bucs to three straight final four appearances and consecutive state championship game appearances, accepts the challenge of Trenton moving in.
“If you want to be the best you got to play the best,” he said. “While I believe it will eliminate some of the better teams from the district/region playoffs combining the district as planned, it will just force us to play at a high level the entire season versus only post season.”
As a 3-time state champion that gets everyone’s best, Benson said his Tigers are also looking forward to the challenge.
“From our perspective, strong competition is something we embrace,” he said. “If our goal is to compete at the highest level, then we have to be prepared to face outstanding teams regardless of the district or region we’re placed in. We have a great deal of respect for the programs we’ll be competing against, and we know every game will require our best effort.”
Benson said that their focus remains unchanged.
“We are committed to developing our players, representing our school and community with pride, and competing for championships,” he said. “Realignment may change the road, but it doesn’t change our expectations or our standards.”
There is one loophole to all of this, which Benson doesn’t agree with.
If Trenton were to be in the top eight overall (Open Division), they would not compete for a Rural state title. Instead, that would open the door for schools like Branford, Madison County, or Union County to get to the final four in the Rural classification.
The MaxPreps rankings will be used to determine the top eight teams for the Open Division, but no one seems to have answers on their algorithm.
“But look at this year for example,” Benson noted. “The way MaxPreps rankings works, we finished the year ranked number two in the state of Florida, but then you look at their national rankings and we’re not in the top 50 but there’s five schools from Florida in the top 50 national rankings. How do we finish number two in the state but have five teams higher than us in national rankings?”
Maybe the FHSAA should consider eliminating regions in the Rural classification and seed the top 16 teams 1-16 after district play?
That way schools can compete in super tough districts and the top four teams in the classification will get a chance to compete for a spot in the final four.
There is an appeals process. The deadline for schools to appeal is Friday, July 3. For tentative schedules for other spring sports, visit www.fhsaa.com.
2027 Tentative Softball District Assignments
Area teams in bold
Class Rural – Region 3 – District 6
Bell
Branford
Dixie County (Cross City)
Fort White
Hilliard
Trenton
Union County (Lake Butler)
Class Rural – Region 4 – District 7
Bronson
Chiefland
Crescent City
Hawthorne
Taylor (Pierson)
Wildwood
Williston
Class 1A – Region 2 – District 3
Altamonte Christian (Altamonte Springs)
Countryside Christian (Gainesville)
First Academy-Leesburg
First Baptist (Palm Coast)
Peniel Baptist (Palatka)
Saint Francis Catholic Academy (Gainesville)
Trinity Christian (Deltona)
Class 2A – Region 1 – District 3
Father Lopez (Daytona Beach)
Interlachen
P. K. Yonge (Gainesville)
St. Joseph (St. Augustine)
Trinity Catholic (Ocala)
Class 3A – Region 1 – District 2
Bozeman (Panama City)
Florida High (Tallahassee)
Gadsden County (Havana)
North Bay Haven (Panama City)
Rutherford (Panama City)
Suwannee (Live Oak)
Class 3A – Region 1 – District 4
Baker County (Glen St. Mary)
Bradford (Starke)
Eastside (Gainesville)
Keystone Heights
Newberry
Palatka
Santa Fe (Alachua)
Class 4A – Region 1 – District 3
Columbia (Lake City)
Ed White (Jacksonville)
Paxon (Jacksonville)
Riverside (Jacksonville)
Stanton (Jacksonville)
Yulee
Class 5A – Region 1 – District 3
Clay (Green Cove Springs)
Gainesville
Middleburg
Oakleaf (Orange Park)
Orange Park
Ridgeview (Orange Park)
Class 6A – Region 1 – District 3
Buchholz (Gainesville)
DeLand
Flagler Palm Coast
Forest (Ocala)
Mainland (Daytona Beach)
Spruce Creek (Port Orange)
West Port (Ocala)
Editor’s note: this story was updated to include all tentative district assignments in the area.